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THE ASIAN Development Bank (ADB) launched its second public bond offering of the year on Tuesday with a surprise Sfr300m issue via SBC Warburg Dillon Read. Having indicated that it will sharply increase its funding this year with ambitions to raise over $9bn, the triple-A rated supranational has used its Swiss franc transaction and an earlier Hong Kong dollar bond as the launch pad for its planned jumbo dollar financings, the first of which is tipped for April.

GLOBAL co-ordinators Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse First Boston have launched the sale of stock in Telecom New Zealand in a global offering which could raise as much as NZ$3.5bn ($2bn). The leads filed a registration statement with the SEC yesterday (Thursday) as the stock has been traded in New York since the company's IPO in 1990. The deal will comprise the sale of 382.67m ordinary shares with a greenshoe option of just over 64m shares which will all be sold by Ameritech in the divestment of its 22% holding in the telecom operator.

THE FIRST international debt market offerings of 1998 from Hong Kong and China are likely to be launched in the higher yielding sector of the market, with preparations under way for an asset backed bond by Cathay International and a Yankee issue by Star Digital. Although both Hong Kong and China remain among a dwindling club of investment grade borrowers in the region, each deal is said to have been firmly targeted at US buyers looking for a pick-up in yield. JP Morgan, in association with up to five co-managers, has begun to market an infrastructure bond for Cathay International. ING Barings, meanwhile, has been on the road with Star Digital for the past three weeks.

A UNIQUE conversion structure and credit enhancement ensured that the $180m offering from Teco Electric and Machinery was a blow-out success when it was priced yesterday (Thursday) at the most aggressive terms ever for a convertible from non-Japan Asia. Lead managers SBC Warburg and UBS said demand was overwhelming, with a total book of over $2bn. The $20m greenshoe is likely to be exercised in the next few weeks.

THE BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has succeeded in drawing a dozen banks to commit $50m apiece to its three year club loan. Central monetary board officials said on Tuesday that the bank had already secured commitments totalling $600m, with a further five banks still considering whether to join the issue. Proceeds will be used to bolster foreign exchange reserves.

* Merrill Lynch & Co Inc Rating: Aa3/AA-

PHILIPPINE fast food retailer Jollibee Foods Corporation priced its novel warrants issue this week, which used for the first time a structure that allows foreign investors to participate in the Philippine retail sector -- and gives international funds access to a highly successful company which is expanding in Asia. The offering raised around $106m, which surpassed the estimated $80m-$100m, from the sale of 220m warrants which will trade as shares on the Manila stock exchange.

THE REPUBLIC of Ukraine this week became the first central and eastern European issuer to tap the euro denominated bond market with the launch of a Eu500m two year offering. Lead managed by SBC Warburg Dillon Read -- bookrunner on all the emerging market sovereign issues in euros to date -- the B2 rated transaction was roadshowed at an indicated issue size of Eu200m-Eu400m. But demand for name and credit diversification as well as yield allowed the lead manager to increase the transaction to Eu500m.

THE REPUBLIC of Argentina made an opportunistic return to the US dollar market yesterday (Thursday), reopening its 2017 global bond with a $750m addition via JP Morgan. The new tranche, which takes the issue size up to $2.75bn, was priced at a small premium to the outstanding issue -- at a spread of 387bp over Treasuries.

BRAZILIAN bond issuance stepped up a gear this week as media group Globopar launched the first corporate benchmark bond of the year and BNDES, the national development bank, made an inaugural visit to the Ecu/euro market. Globopar's offering -- a $300m 10 year deal, with call options starting after five years -- had originally been planned for launch on October 24, the very day when the Hong Kong market crashed and Asia's turmoil spilled over into emerging markets around the world.

ING BARINGS has been mandated to lead the largest Mexican corporate bond issue so far this year -- a $500m long dated Yankee offering for Grupo Minero Mexico, the country's leading mining firm. The issue, for which roadshows start in Europe today (Friday) and continue in the US next week, is likely to be launched in around 10 days' time. Although details on the transaction are sketchy, it is expected to have a multi-tranche format. A 10 year issue looks certain, as well as a possible longer tranche or tranches at 20 and/or 30 years.

* Deutsche Morgan Grenfell has been mandated to lead manage a debut Eurobond for the Czech Republic's SPT Telecom. It should emerge for DM500m over a five year tenor and be launched at the end of March or the beginning of April. Thanks to its A rating from Standard & Poor's, the SPT Telecom issue will represent a rare opportunity for fixed income investors to book an investment grade asset from a corporate operating in the fast growing industry in central and eastern Europe.